It stands to reason that the manager of the largest hedge fund (by value of assets under management) in the world would also claim the highest earnings. And in fact that is the case.
Ray Dalio, head of the $120 billion hedge fund Bridgewater Associates, took home $3.9 billion last year in what was, for both Dalio and the industry as a whole, a down year.
In fact, the HedgeFund Intelligence Global Composite Index lost 2% of it value, according to a report in CNN, while the S&P 500 Index ended the year flat.
The disappointing performance of hedge funds cost the top earners in the industry a bundle: compensation for the top 25 managers dropped a whopping 35% overall, representing a total of $22 billion dollars, and lowering those same top 25 managers to an average salary of $576 million each.
The list of the top 5 earning fund managers:
| Manager | Company | Compensation |
| Ray Diallo | Bridgewater Associates | $3.9 billion |
| Carl Icahn | Private Investor | $2.5 billion |
| James Simons | Renaissance Technology | $2.1 billion |
| Kenneth Griffin | Citadel Management | $700 million |
| Steven Cohen | SAC Capital | $585 million |
The financial performance difficulties of 2011 took their toll, as 15 managers of the top 25 listed in 2010 didn’t make the 2011 list. Among the casualties: Paulson & Co. founder John Paulson, who missed the list for the first time since 2007.
Not all fund managers were hurt by 2010, however, as newcomers included Bridgewater co-chief investment officers Greg Jensen and Robert Prince, and Elliott Management’s Paul Singer.
